In a case of cathartic mutual therapy, Berry once again knocks me out with the depth of her talent and the perfection of her beauty.
Things We Lost in the Fire (2007)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:120
Fresh:77
Rotten:43
Average Rating:6.5/10
Consensus: Things We Lost in the Fire is a well-acted, beautifully filmed reflection on love, loss, addiction and recovery from life's obstacles.
Rated: R [See Full Rating] Rated R for drug content and language.
Runtime: 1 hr 59 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:Oct 19, 2007 Wide
Box Office: $3,241,832
Synopsis: Danish director Susanne Bier gained international acclaim when she was nominated for an Oscar for 2006's AFTER THE WEDDING, but before that she had strong ties to the hyper-realistic, documentary... Danish director Susanne Bier gained international acclaim when she was nominated for an Oscar for 2006's AFTER THE WEDDING, but before that she had strong ties to the hyper-realistic, documentary style of the Dogme 95 group. In her U.S. debut, THINGS WE LOST IN THE FIRE, Bier effectively brings together her tendency towards soapy subject matter and her signature vérité style, creating characters with a depth and a human fallibility that are rare in Hollywood. Halle Berry (X-MEN, THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD) stars as Audrey Burke, the stay-at-home wife of well-to-do real estate broker Brian (David Duchovny, TRUST THE MAN). They enjoy what is to all appearances a perfect marriage and family life, with two adorable children (Alexis Llewelyn and Micah Berry) and a fabulous house. Audrey's life is shattered when Brian is killed attempting to intervene in a domestic dispute. In her grief, Audrey reaches out to an unlikely ally: her husband's childhood friend, Jerry (Benicio del Toro, TRAFFIC, 21 GRAMS), a 40-something heroin addict whose relationship with Brian Audrey has always resented. After Brian's death, Jerry goes straight, and Audrey invites him to move into her home, where he bonds with Audrey's kids and begins to heal. The uneasy, tense, and tender relationship that develops between Audrey and Jerry is the heart of the film, with del Toro's charismatic performance suggesting realms of human experience previously uncharted on film: his portrayal of withdrawal symptoms rivals Ewan McGregor's memorable TRAINSPOTTING scene. Berry takes more subtle risks with her role, testing the viewer's sympathy with a somewhat prickly character. Allison Lohman (FLICKA) is a strong supporting character as a Narcotics Anonymous attendee with a crush on Jerry. [More]
Starring: Halle Berry, Benicio Del Toro, David Duchovny, Omar Benson Miller
Starring: Halle Berry, Benicio Del Toro, David Duchovny, Omar Benson Miller, Alison Lohman, John Carroll Lynch
Director: Susanne Bier
Director: Susanne Bier
Screenwriter: Allan Loeb
Producer: Sam Mendes, Sam Mercer
Composer: Johan Soderqvist
Studio: Paramount Pictures
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Reviews for Things We Lost in the Fire
A movie about loss and mourning and bottomless sadness. But its very production is, on another level, a reason to celebrate.
Serves as strong reminder of what a powerfully charismatic and completely natural actor Benicio Del Toro is.
Where the film's ambitions crumble is in its avowed refusal to make its audience too uncomfortable.
Scheduled blowups and symbolic dreams and interminable tears until we all feel like we've learned a little something about loss: We want our two hours back.
The best part of the film is del Toro's performance, a junkie jumble of many layers, glued together with a deep seated humanity that reaches out to us.
Things We Lost in the Fire is certainly not a comedy, but it is definitely mordant with its two Big Themes: Loss and Addiction, both treated in a singularly heavy-handed manner, for which I blame primarily Mr. Loeb’s screenplay.
Highlighted by a performance by Benicio Del Toro at his most magnetically bedraggled, this is a welcome rarity: a full-on heartstring yanker that doesn't leave the viewer feeling ill-used afterward.
[Del Toro is] both beast and beauty in a movie that mismanages the idea that life is not a fairy tale.
Things We Lost in the Fire is the best of the recent crop of films about coping with loss. It also boasts a quietly riveting performance by Benicio Del Toro.
'Things We Lost in the Fire' deserves praise for its top-notch performances and its humanistic treatment of such serious subject matter as grief and addiction.
As yet another example of a gifted foreign filmmaker...fudging up their reputation by traveling over to Tinsel Town for some Western promise, Things We Lost in the Fire is Lifetime lite cinema masquerading as actual A-list excellence.
Haunting cinema...an exquisite film of mammoth dramatic reach and sympathy, and it presents Susanne Bier as one of the most observant, patient filmmakers working today.
Latest News for Things We Lost in the Fire
March 03, 2008:
RT on DVD: Into the Wild, Things We Lost In The Fire, My Kid Could Paint That Arrive
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January 18, 2008:
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December 10, 2007:
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It's a young tradition, but Hollywood's Black List -- the year-end list of production executives' favorite scripts in development -- has already become an eagerly awaited... More...
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It's that time of year when the film world's biggest and brightest descend on London and show some Oscar hopefuls nice and early. RT has been spending time eyeing up the films... More...
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